Ugh! Totally injured my neck on the rowing machine at the gym yesterday. Could hardly move it when I woke up this morning! However, there was NOONE at the gym last night, which was glorious! I could machine-hop without having to worry about, "Okay, if that dude gets off the elliptical, then I'll totally use it after, but if not, I'll have to use the stair-climber, and I really hate the stair-climber". (The stair-climber is REALLY hard!)

I have mixed feelings about the opening ceremonies of the Olympics. A lot of it was really beautiful! I loved the Spirit Bear, and the orcas, and the grove of trees. But I hated the punk-fiddlers and the never-ending singers and Nelly Furtado's sky-high shoes. I'm actually getting increasingly excited about going over there next weekend to see what it's like!

Apparently I'm not exciting and have nothing more to share! Off I go for crafty-ness!

So I end up seeing a catch phrase or term all over the internet, and I'll hate it--and yet, somehow it sneaks its way into my vocabulary? Like "Squeee!". I hate "squee!". But I'm not going to lie. Today is so uber "squee"-worthy! ...

'Cause I heard back from our venue:

The chef and I talked at length about your wedding today and although there is no way we can provide you with a menu this far ahead, he did agree that he would something nice for you for $27.95 per person. This is really $22.00 for the food, $3.30 grat and $2.64 Tax (that's if hst goes through, if not your tax component will go down, so vote against it!) This is a very good deal for you, my chef has a very big heart :)

Now if that doesn't deserve a "squee (with extra eee's!), than I don't know what does! $22.00 a plate! Better than I could've dreamed of!

Now, I know I've exhausted the wedding-talk as of late, and I promise you that I am not a bridal-magazine weilding, high-pitched giggling, obsessive lip-gloss applying, hopelessly ditzy bride-to-be! I actually become quite angry when I start to think about the whole "wedding industrial complex", and I've actually become quite turned off the bridal magazines for perpetuating this notion that weddings must be expensive. Gag. Every time I score a good deal on something wedding-related, it feels like one small victory against the wedding industrial complex (henceforth referred to as WIC)! I scour the $1.50 bins at Michaels! I pace the aisles of the dollar store looking for inspiration! I refuse to take out a loan to pay for my wedding dress (that I will wear for ONE DAY, folks!). I want to have a kick-ass party, and I want it to be whimsical and special. As I explained it to Erika, my DIY approach has had me putting my heart and soul into every project I've tackled (and will be tackling over the next year and a half), and I'm overcome with such a sense of pride when I reflect on the projects I've accomplished! Take that, WIC! Onward to some more matrimonial musings...

-I hate mermaid dresses. Like, I really abhor them. No one, not even the waifiest of waifs, looks good in a mermaid dress. It's like skinny jeans, you know? In fact, I'm pretty sure the same people that invented skinny jeans are the ones selling the mermaid dresses. I'm pretty sure!

-We are not hiring a DJ, because I really don't want to listen to (nor force our guests to listen to) shitty remixes of Beyonce and The Black-Eyed Peas. Now, don't get me wong. I have actually sung along to "Single Ladies", and between you and me, "Tonight's Gonna Be a Good Night' gets me kind of pumped...shhh. But no. Instead, Ryan and I are going to create a playlist of our own music, 80s punk rock covers and all. It's going to be rad.

-Flowers totally die! And they totally cost money! That's why I'm painstakingly hand-crafting 100's (OMG am I really?!) of tissue-paper flowers ... wait. What am I thinking? As far as the bouquets go, we're totally hitting up the farmer's market a couple of months before the wedding and asking them to put aside all of their white flowers, which is totally going to suit the woodsy, bird-themed vibe of the day.

-I can't even fathom dropping coin on a wedding cake after we literally shovelled the remains of Ashley and Spencer's partially eaten, fondant-covered cake into the garbage the day after the wedding. It makes me heart sink just thinking about it. Nope, my mom is doing us the lovely favour of making our cake, and I'm confident it's going to be beautiful ('cause my mom's totally OCD, just like me!).

-I don't want a limo. I want a vintage car! Where does one even begin to look? Maybe someone's grandpa...maybe?

'Kay, well anyhow...I need to write back the lady from our venue, and intervene in Ryan's Playstation-playing, because when he says, "I'll just be a couple more minutes" ('cause I'll be waiting to watch a movie, or "Hoarders", see), what he really means is, "You're going to have to peel this controller out of my sweaty hands, or else I'm going to sit here until midnight".

Ciao lovelies!

PS - I also really hate "for the win!". I had to look up that up the first time I saw it. It's taking over like those stupid fucking Facebook statuses about posting your doppelganger's bra colour or whatever it is...

Ohmigosh, it's sure been stormy! Reminds me of the winter Ryan and I first moved to Victoria, when it rained torrentially and our crappy basement suite flooded. Good thing we only lived there for a couple of months!

Things have been busy, but mellow. Nothing terribly exciting to report. I want to post piccies of my wedding-crafts progress, but I don't want to put them on Facebook 'cause I don't want to reveal the surprise to family members and so forth. Anyone know any good sites to host pictures (simple is best)? I went to Vancouver with Ashley this past weekend, to go to the Lovestruck bridal show. It was a pretty decent show, and there were lots of good things about it (free mimosas & canapes!). However, I'd say my dislikes far outweighed my likes. It was poorly coordinated and nobody seemed to know what was going on (it wasn't your typical tradeshow set up--instead, it was trying to be all trendy and party-esque). The fashion show, although it started good, became an absolute joke, with ridiculous "Project Runway"-like gowns consuming much of the latter half of the show (the type of gowns that would've got the contestant voted off the show...if that is indeed how "Project Runway" works...I wouldn't know). The show ran at six, but we'd pretty much seen all the vendors (yawn!), and so we left around 2:30. Actually, there was this one poor girl doing a workshop on DIY birdcage veils and she was so nervous--and people were getting up during her presentation and leaving! Like, half the room emptied! I mean, this is a room full of Coach-purse toting, extension wearing city-snob-bitches (cunts, in fact!), and this poor girl in her skinny jeans and vintage jewellry was just so exceptionally nervous, it was painful! And yet her crafts were so amazing! After everyone left, we went up to her and chatted for awhile, and Ashley actually bought one of her feather headpieces, and my sister Marisa bought me a white feathered headpiece (which is absolutely beautiful!). Hopefully we redeemed her horrible experience. Oh, I remembered her business name: A Farmer's Daughter. Check it out! Her work is brilliant!

(Oh dear, I hear things banging around outside! There's a chilli cook-off at work tomorrow and the power can't go out!)

Anyhow, the bridal show was on Sunday. On Satuday we had lunch with Sheelagh, Marisa, and Adriel at Havana's (don't mind me going all link-happy here!). (Their sangria is to die for, most especially the Tropical Sangria!) After, Adriel departed and us girls went to the creepiest-ever bridal store we'd found on-line where I literally held in my hands a wedding dress with a rhinestoned-denim top (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). Ashley took a picture, but I haven't seen it yet. The dresses we're grubby (and yet sold as "new"), the store smelled weird, and the girl helping us was (I swear!) on some sort of illegal drug. Ugh, we got out ASAP. After, we stopped in at Charlie's Chocolate Factory, then Metrotown, before picking up a pile of sushi and going home for sushi & wine. We were up until 12:30 am just being silly, and then went to the bridal show on Sunday.

Ugh, and Ashley and I had the worst trip home on Sunday. We got to BC Ferries around 5:15 to catch the 6:00, which was sold out. Which means we had to catch the 7:00, but 'cause it was so stormy, the 7:00 didn't leave until 7:45, and at 8:45 we could STILL see the harbour. We indulged in the best $10.00 we ever spent and went to the lounge for recliners, magazines, and free tea & cheese! Turns out I got my money's worth, as we didn't get home until 10:00 pm.

Other than that, things are good. I finished my wedding favours (seriously!), and in Vancouver I picked up two large bird-cage candle holders on clearance from Losers (read: Winners). They will be PERFECTION! Ryan and I have also emailed a potential venue with a plethora of questions, but the lady's on holidays until the weekend, so I won't hear back from her right away.

In other news, I plan on setting up the Christmas tree this weekend, and hopefully getting my Christmas cards done. Oh, and I finally started me trial at the government employees gym (yoga! cardio!). It goes 'til December 5th...I'll let ya know how it goes.

OMG. I went from "so excited to plan a wedding!" to "I'm effing stressed out trying to find a venue"!

Ryan and I keep flip-flopping on the dates, and we thought we had a venue picked out in Victoria for October 2010, but alas, as it is the German hall, they don't book anything in October 'cause of Oktoberfest. Back to square one.

Now we are considering a wedding in Kelowna for May 2011, provided it were to all come together. We could have the ceremony on the lake at my aunt and uncle's house. My other aunt and uncle have a clubhouse on their property that can be rented out, which I figure could be bridal party accomodations the night of the wedding. So I have two families there, plus family in Osoyoos nearby, and Ryan's sister is in Kelowna, too, which means accommodations for guests and nobody having to ferry over from the mainland and beyond. We've even found a good reception site, though I'm waiting to hear back from the fella. All this venue-securing is causing me a lot of anxiety, as I don't like to be in limbo. If we can just secure a venue, then I can carry on with the more elaborate details. I know I shoudn't feel in a hurry for spring 2011, but I am. It would get the biggest "to do" off my plate! So much stress! So now, I've sent all my emails this morning in regards to Kelowna, and all I can do is wait to hear back! It would work out so well to have the wedding in Kelowna, both for sites, and for our pocketbook. The reception-site has all the necessary stuff, like music, dancing, bar service, and a PA system. It would be about $3500 for food, and then another $500.00 or so for the dancefloor, taxes, etc. We'd love to be able to keep the venue budget at $4500 or under. Most of the other stuff I'll be making/creating on my own, so I can keep the cost down there:

Favours: marble magnets--already have a bunch made, and am working away on them.

Centerpieces: no flowers for me! They'll be twigs and lanterns and birds, in tall glass vases.

Bouttenieres: sprigs of rosemary!

Wedding Dress: from David's Bridal, probably. I'll try on some dresses in town, and see if I can find them on David's Bridal, or take a trip to Seattle to go there in person.

Cake: Mom's making it!

Wine: Ryan and I are probably going to u-Vin, haha!

That's just some ideas! I have an accordian folder full of clippings, and a sketchbook full of my designs and ideas--everything from our first dance song, to our unity ceremony (combining sand!). I have confidence that I can keep most of the cost down, it's just that damn venue that's causing me anxiety! I already bought my hairpiece ages ago (haha!) on eBay--a swarovski crystal hairpiece with a small starfish in it. Though I can't find it currently--I probably stashed it away somewhere to put it aside. I paid $10.00 for it--and it's completely handmade. The ones at the bridal stores sell for $100+!

Anyhow, I'm going to Tammy's tonight to hang out with the girls and do crafts and have some wine! I'm looking forward to it! And tomorrow Ashley and I are going to visit some bridal shops (heh), and then have lunch and watch "The Proposal" (geez, I'm turning into a wedding-obssessed-geek!). I know this entry is short and sucky, but off I go!

So! Most of you probably already know this from Facebook, but for those that don't, I am officially engaged! Before this, I used to think that upon my engagement, I would be level-headed and calm, and that I wouldn't get swept away in the wedding-mania that so many brides-to-be subscribe to. Well, that's where I was wrong. The last week has been spent flipping through bridal magazines, planning details out in my head, searching for venues, reading wedding books--I've fallen prey to wedding-fixation! I've been watching "Say Yes to the Dress" with tears in my eyes! I become overwhelmed with happiness at times and my heart starts racing in excitment! Here's how it happened...

Ryan and I had booked a stay in Whistler back in May for our 7-year anniversary. Of course, many of my friends were asking whether I thought he would propose, and inside I was hoping he would, but I refused to get my hopes up, and so I had reconciled myself with the fact that he wouldn't be proposing (and I was okay with that!). We drove up to Whistler on Saturday and checked in at the Fairmont (we got a killer deal on accommodations, and they even upgraded our room for us, free of charge!). On Saturday afternoon we wandered through the village--it was a crisp and brilliantly sunny weekend, and everything looked so beautiful! We went and had appies and drinks at The Amsterdam Pub, wandered the village slightly tipsy, then returned to our hotel. We hung out for a bit, then decided to go out for a late dinner, and ended up at Monk's Grill. The service was slow (the waiter forgot to submit our order), but it was a nice place and we were happy just to sit, pick at the bread, and have a few drinks. We left dinner tipsy once again, and were wandering near the base of Blackcomb. I saw this little tiny red barn (meant to advertise trail rides during the daytime), and so I told Ryan I wanted to go over to it for some pictures! He obliged me, and I commented on how he never wants to do photo ops, haha!

He told me to go stand in front of the barn, and he'd take my picture. He had the camera out, I was posing, and then...he pulled the ring out and asked me to marry him! I stood there stunned, and then my sailor mouth took over: "Are you f-----g kidding me! Ohmigod, you're f-----g joking! Is this real! OMG!" He put the ring on my finger after assuring me it was real (and asking me to stop swearing in astonishment), and then I did the overwhelming crying-sobbing thing! We walked around the village, me holding my hand in front of me like a beacon! I don't even remember going back to the hotel--I think we stopped several times so I could either squeal in glee or cry for a moment! We phoned our parents and best friends (future wedding party), and then we ventured down to the hot tub and pool.

We met some folks down there that we started chatting with, and told them we'd just got engaged. They bought our pitcher of mojitos and also ordered a round of shots! Too funny! I went to bed that night blissfully happy (which was only slightly ruined by my waking up at 6:00 am feeling terribly ill--undoubtedly the result of downing a pitcher of mojito's and a Burt Reynolds shot all in the span of 40 minutes!).

The rest of our weekend in Whistler was amazing! On Sunday we rode the Peak 2 Peak gondola, which was breathtaking in the sunshine. We spent the latter part of the day in bed drinking tea and watching television and basking in newly-engaged bliss. We left on Monday morning after an amazing trip!

Oh, and my ring! Well...I'm not one of those girls that had any sort of ideas about what I wanted for an engagement ring. There were two things I liked: white gold, and solitaires. But aside from that, I wasn't fussy. Plus, I feel like the guy really should call the shots when picking out a ring. He wants you to wear it your whole life, and that's special! Ryan picked out an amazing ring--a whilte gold solitaire, and more beautiful than I could have imagined. It has a floating diamond, so you can see the whole gem from either side. The cut is round and dazzlingly sparkly. He had it made at Francis jewellers--they've already resized it for me, and so I've been wearing it since Tuesday (pausing frequently to stop and admire it!). I can't wait to see my mom and dad this weekend, to share the joys with them!

We haven't quite settled on a date yet. We've narrowed it down to either October 10th, 2010, or July 30th or 31st, 2011. I'm already stressing out trying to pick a venue, but I've narrowed it down. Ryan said he wants to get married in Victoria, but on account of the venue-cost here, I'm thinking we may have to extend our search to consider Nanaimo and the Parksville area as well. We're obviously paying for the wedding on our own, so we don't have a huge budget. But I've already come up with countless crafting projects, including pathway luminaries and rosemary-spring boutounnieres for the groomsmen. I think the theme will be organic, minimalist, and nature-esque. Initially I wanted a coast theme, but I'm starting to move towards a bird theme with a more woodsy feel. But of course, I'm going to discuss this all with my Mom on the weekend and get her input. I just can't believe it! I'm so elated!

Anyhow, I best be off to get showered, as we're heading up island this morning. Until next time, lovelies!

I'm just super exhausted as of late. (Aw, Bails keeps pawing me from the sofa, and whining for me to hold her in my lap...did I tell you our dog is a cat in disguse? She perches on the arm of the sofa like a cat; she washes her face like a cat; and she loves lap-time, just like a cat, haha!). I was struggling to do a balance pose in yoga tonight. I can usually balance with little difficulty, but tonight I couldn't hold the balance for more than a few seconds. And I guess that's sort of how I feel right now. Imbalanced.

My plan is to cocoon inside for the weekend and do little else except sit around with Ryan and Bailey and be shamelessly lazy. All this activity is starting to catch up with me, and I feel like I haven't slept in days. And I really want to feel refreshed for our weekend in Whistler! I've felt so disorganized and out of it lately. Seriously. For example, I arrived at work today feeling alright because even though I've got a few things sitting on my desk, I was confident I could get everything done (mostly the things I haven't had time to attend to the rest of the week). Well, before I know it, I'm being pulled in all directions, and the day turns manic once again! I went to a boardroom twice expecting it to be open, and instead, it was locked--and of course, I neglected to bring my swipe card, counting on it being open. I helped set up a webinar this morning, and all was well, except the link to the webinar didn't work, and all the attendees were sitting around for fifteen minutes while we frantically phoned the company trying to get the proper link! When I got to the bus, I realized I'd forgotten my housekeys that morning (and Ryan had left me the car at home to go to yoga), so I literally had to stop off at Ryan's work, then grab another bus home! I think my chaos is stemming from my extreme tiredness, but either way, it sucks! I had an ETO day on Monday, and forgot we were doing a "field trip" first thing Tuesday morning, which required closed-toe shoes. Well, stupid me, I wore sandals! So that's pretty much how my entire week has gone.

I went to the library and took out a bunch of books on clean eating & sugar free cooking/baking. I haven't committed myself to candida yet, but this weekend I'm going to get some menu plans going. I just started reading Barbara Kingsolver's "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle", and I'm enjoying it a lot so far, even though the whole food-security thing as a whole is quite frightening! I love many of her fiction books (especially "The Poisonwood Bible", which I read when I was in grade eight or so), and I've discovered she employs the same poetic language in her non-fiction. This is the third non-fiction book I've read about food, consecutively (the first being "The Yeast Connection Cookbook", and the second being "Skinny Bitch"), so after this I'm delving in to some mind candy!

I am so ready for the weekend! Around this time of year I always go through a couple of weeks when I feel like I don't have enough time for anything. I have so many projects and would-be projects on the go that it's discouraging to think about how I haven't had time to absorb myself in them. Not only my candida meal-plans (critical to the diet, seeing as processed foods are restricted), but I was also planning on scrapbooking our summer trip to the Okanagan, and I've got marble magnets on the go which have been sorely neglected. Oh, and then there's my novel, which has been untouched since before we moved, save for maybe a paragraph or two. I think that I hit a writer's block with that, and I'm not sure how I can get things flowing again. It doesn't help that I'm by no means a novelist, and this is just one of those life-goal things I've always wanted to do. But it's sitting in the back of my mind like an essay I keep putting off writing or something! Hell, I don't even have time for TV! Maybe having a PVR is dangerous, 'cause honestly, I have such a backlog of programs I haven't watched yet. I think that's what my Saturday morning will be for, haha!

Anyhow, aside from that, there's not much else to report. Cousinfest went well, but alas, I'm too tired to summarize it all at the moment, so I won't. Instead I'll sip my earl grey and wait to pick Ryan up. Until next time!

Apart from being at work the past two days, today is the first time I've literally sat down in a week. I am so exhausted! Our moving extravaganza was so ridiculously draining--and to be moving in a record-breaking heatwave! I couldn't believe it!

Last Saturday Ryan and I spent all day packing up the remainder of our apartment and running errands. On the plus side, I took some books to Russell's Books and earned myself a $77.00 store credit! I'm so excited about this! We got up early on Sunday morning and picked up the Budget truck, then spent hours loading up the truck and doing the last bit of cleaning on our apartment.

Fortunately, we got to have a little bit of a layover at Erika's house (she put our homeless selves up for the night). Her roommates Jen and Eph were having a baby-shower-BBQ, so we got to hang out and relax (and I even got to drive Nate's jacked-up mobility (beer cooler) scooter, which I will declare was an absolute blast!).

We got up early Monday morning and had a bite to eat and did some shopping while waiting for the lawyers to call. We got our keys to the condo around 1:00, then spent (seriously) about six hours moving in. At the end of it, we ordered Chinese and threw ourselves down on the sofa and basked in a happy exhaustion. Then we put together some of our Ikea furniture, and I unpacked the kitchen before staggering off to bed.

We've honestly spent the past week unpacking, cleaning, assembling Ikea furniture, doing more unpacking and cleaning, doing some laundry--and not much else! But Ashley came over after work tonight and I had a glass of wine and we saw a movie and now I feel like the house is more manageable and is coming together.

I love, love, LOVE our condo! I can't wait to get it all set up and share pictures! It is just so lovely and perfect! And I absolutely adore our enormous kitchen! I feel so happy here!

Anyhow, my parents are coming tomorrow for the weekend, so I'm going to try to get the spare bedroom/office ready (Ashley suggested we call it the "rumpus room", which I will henceforth refer to it as). And I'm going to make some tea to sustain me through more unpacking & organizing. So until next time, when things hopefully won't be so brief! Ciao!

Had a fairly mellow weekend. Friday, Ryan, Ashley, Spencer and I saw the comedy show at Hecklers, which turned out to be hilarious. We left the show in stitches! However, we were all bagged at 11:00, and so Ryan and I ventured on home and pretty much went to bed as soon as we got in the door (you know you're getting old when).

Saturday was devoted to packing & running moving-related errands. We headed over to Nate and Erika's late afternoon to receive our shipment of Ikea stuff (which, annoyingly enough, didn't show up until an hour after it was scheduled to arrive!). I sat on the outdoor swing and read my book in the lovely, warm sunshine. It was so nice outside--there were children laughing in the neighbourhood and the leaves on the trees were rustling, and I felt superbly content. Maybe because it was a welcome break to moving-related stuff. Nate made Ryan and I dinner (the man is gifted in the kitchen), and our Ikea stuff arrived as we were finishing up. I went home with sunburned shoulders and a car half-full of Ikea furniture (none of it really fit), and we came home and did more packing, then watched a movie before bed. Yep, low key!

This morning we got up early, and I ran over to Serious Coffee to get drinks for Ryan and I, but as I was trying to juggle the door to get back into the building after arriving home, I dropped Ryan's mocha, and it pretty much exploded all over my hand and all over the outside door! Oops! Some people came by to pick up our computer desk during the late morning, and then Ryan's dad arrived. We ventured downtown for lunch at Milestone's, then wandered through the Government Street market and hit up Capital Iron (where I got the lovely tree-silhouette shower curtain I wanted, as well as a wee, little cactus!).

I've got more of a sunburn and am exhausted and apologize for the dullness of this entry.

Ohmigod, Ryan and I are moving next weekend!

We discovered that the former owners of our condo posted a bunch of their furniture on Used Victoria, including their couch (which we love), so I've emailed them and asked if they'd let us buy the sofa and just leave it in there, haha! Wouldn't that be convenient? I'm crossing my fingers that they email us back tonight.